The young Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn boys basketball team got the season underway November 28 at George in a match-up with George-Little Rock. The Mustangs marked their first basketball game as a member of the War Eagle Conference with a 69-31 win over HMS.
There was a big disparity in the rebounding as George-Little Rock collected 39 rebounds and the Hawks just 12. “It was a tough first outing for our guys,” said HMS head coach Naet Hoaglund. “I felt like we struggled from a physicality standpoint, especially on the boards. We aren’t the biggest team out there so we have to be physical when attacking rebounds. I didn’t feel like our effort was great on the rebounding front.”
The Mustangs were successful on 27 of their 51 shot attempts for 53 percent. “Defensively, I thought we worked hard but we allowed the ball inside too often and GLR was able to capitalize,” commented Hoaglund. “We were able to turn them over 18 times which was great for us. We just need to learn to take advantage of those turnovers.” HMS was 12-of-36 from the field for 33 percent.
Josh Cruz scored nine points, Lawton Schiphoff and Bradley Van Beek six points apiece, George Vargas four and Jayden Leth and Zach Pearson three each. Cruz and Schiphoff each notched three assists. “Offensively, I was pleased with our flow in the first quarter,” said the HMS coach. “It felt like the ball was moving and guys were getting confident looks. Things became stagnant in the second and third quarters and we struggled to find our rhythm. I didn’t feel like we did a great job of attacking the rim through much of the game and that showed by us only getting to the foul line four times.”
The Hawks’ turnover total exceeded that of the Mustangs. “We’ve got to learn to value the basketball better,” stated Hoaglund. “Every possession matters and when you’ve got 20 turnovers we’re really hurting our chances to score. It’s a process and our kids are learning. We’ve got to focus on the things we can control and maximize the opportunities allotted to us.”
Alex Billings grabbed three rebounds for HMS. Schiphoff made two steals and Leth blocked a pair of shots.
HMS 13 5 5 8 – 31
GLR 23 18 20 8 – 69